A favorite of many dads that you will find on grills and cookouts throughout Milwaukee and Wisconsin today for Father's Day today is the bratwurst.
Quoting from Wikipedia:
The Bratwurst was popularized in Sheboygan County, Wisconsin in the 1920s. In general, each local butcher shop would take orders and hand make bratwurst fresh to be picked up on a particular day. The fat content of the sausages was substantial, making this necessary to avoid spoilage. Much of the fat was removed during the cooking over charcoal. Usually one kept a pan of cold water handy to the grill, so it was easy to dip one's fingers in and fling the water onto the flames caused by the burning of the excess fat.
Though originally brought to North America by German immigrants, it is a common sight at summer cookouts, right alongside the famous hot dog.
To read more about the bratwurst's history and tradition in Wisconsin click here. Just to give you an idea how popular bratwurst are in Wisconsin (due to the Founding Fathers' German heritage) we have several large manufacturers such as Johnsonville, Klements, and Usingers. Also, every good local meat market makes there own special recipe for bratwurst.
Since brats are a fairly fatty sausage, I like to pre-boil them for about 30 minutes in a pot of beer and onions before putting them on the grill. This gets much of the fat out and reduces flare-ups when they are grilled. The beer and onions also give them a great taste. (Most brats are made from pork but you can also find them made of beef.)
I boil them in the morning and then let them stay in the liquid, refrigerated, until it's time to put them on the grill. They only need about 15 minutes on the grill to brown on all sides.
Placed on a bed of caramelized onions with a little hearty mustard on a pretzel bun...it doesn't get much better than this for a summertime treat! Some corn on the cob, fresh tomatoes with EVOO, balsamic and fresh basil not to mention the first harvested peas from my garden round out the meal. I love this time of year!
I hope whatever you are doing today on Father's Day you have a wonderful day!
